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That's right, you read it right. One club was missing from our bag, all other clubs were intact.

We were flying in from Oakland to Phoenix for my sons first regional, but when we landed his hybrid was missing. Since we had a tee time scheduled on the same day, we just played without it. I can't say that it didn't hurt us during the tournament, and there were times I wish he had his hybrid, but it is what it is. Since it was a custom cut-down adult cobra hybrid, I couldn't just pick out a US kids hybrid as a replacement (Not that that's even easy to find at pro shops) .

When the tournament was over and we came back home I filed a report with both Southwest and TSA.

Here's the response from Southwest:"Dear ---,
Probably the single most frustrating experience - for both the Customer and the airline - is when a problem
occurs concerning a Customer's checked luggage. When this happens, the ideal solution would be to offer
recompense for the loss - unfortunately, unlimited liability simply cannot be justified.
On a daily basis, we accept sight unseen thousands of bags for transport and theoretically, everyone that
checks a bag could file a missing article report. For this reason, the Officers of Southwest Airlines have
established liability limitations and strict guidelines for processing baggage claims. Unless there is evidence
that a bag has been improperly handled (delay in delivery or signs of exterior damage), we do not accept
financial responsibility for missing articles. We do, however, make every possible effort to locate the
reported missing property. We will continue our search for approximately 30 days and contact you if we are
successful.
Additionally, Southwest Airlines Contract of Carriage states that, "no claim will be entertained by Carrier
unless preliminary notification of such claim is first presented to Carrier within four (4) hours after arrival of
the flight on which the loss, damage, or delay is alleged to have occurred."
Hopefully you will understand our position in this matter and will not allow this incident to tarnish your image
of our airline. You are a valued Customer and we look forward to the opportunity to serve you again. Please
contact us at the number referenced above if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
Katina"

I'm still waiting from TSA and here's their reply:"The TSA Claims Management Branch (CMB) will attempt to resolve your claim as quickly as possible. The Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA) governs the way your claim is processed and establishes your rights in regards to your claim. Please allow up to six (6) months to fully investigate your claim from March 26, 2018. Status is also available on TSA.gov by entering your claim number, in the Claims Management Branch tab. Thank you for your patience.

Sincerely,"

Going forward, what's the best way to prevent club loss?
Any tips and ideas?

Those two stories are totally different. The bag was completely lost. This was one club out of the bag.

Stolen seems unlikely to me. What are the odds someone would steal a kids sized hybrid?

I thought the same but perhaps it was someone who doesn't play golf, and was simply looking to ebay it?
Stealing one club would be much easier as it would lower suspicion. Can you imagine an airport employee lugging a golf bag into his car at the end of his shift?

Sorry for the loss. I'm deathly afraid to travel with my son's clubs. Last year at Pinehurst, the TSA opened our club glove bag both ways. They dismantled the stiff arm and took all the clubs out of the bag. It was a complete mess. I'm surprised the club even arrived without broken shafts. They even took all the balls out of the box and sleeves. That pissed me off.

One club lost suggests the bag was opened for check and not adequately resealed, so one fell out, or when opened that one club was stolen. One is less likely to be noticed. Pick your poison.

I travel a great deal and always use a ClubGlove Burst Proof II with Stiff Arm for my golf clubs and have a backup set. Additionally, I wrap two towels around my driver and 3wd shafts and use a TSA approved lock that they have a key for if they need to unlock. Never had an issue. If TSA left it partially unzipped, three large buckle clips are tight enough to keep prying eyes out and clubs inside. Always under 50lbs too, so cost is minimal. I checked into Ship Sticks and learned a limited number of cities are reasonably priced, while many other cities are too costly.

Sorry for the loss. I'm deathly afraid to travel with my son's clubs. Last year at Pinehurst, the TSA opened our club glove bag both ways. They dismantled the stiff arm and took all the clubs out of the bag. It was a complete mess. I'm surprised the club even arrived without broken shafts. They even took all the balls out of the box and sleeves. That pissed me off.

I bet the TSA guy opened your bag and the hybrid just fell out.

Have never flown with clubs. Didn't know it was such a pain. I will have to ask my daughter about it.

Sorry for your loss, but thank you for sharing. I think I have decided what I will do when I fly. I usually fly Southwest because of their "bags fly free" policy.

1. I will take a picture of the clubs right before I close the travel bag with a sign detailing each of the clubs.
2. This note will be secured to the bag (the golf bag, not the travel bag) as a deterrent for anyone thinking they could just slip one club out.
3. When I pick up the clubs, I will check to make sure they are all there and immediately file a claim if they aren't.

Those two stories are totally different. The bag was completely lost. This was one club out of the bag.

Stolen seems unlikely to me. What are the odds someone would steal a kids sized hybrid?

I thought the same but perhaps it was someone who doesn't play golf, and was simply looking to ebay it?
Stealing one club would be much easier as it would lower suspicion. Can you imagine an airport employee lugging a golf bag into his car at the end of his shift?

Also if you read Southwest's fine print, it's really interesting. "Unless there is evidence that a bag has been improperly handled (delay in delivery or signs of exterior damage), we do not accept financial responsibility for missing articles."It's like saying if the bag is missing it's their fault, but if something in the bag is missing you're out of luck. If an airline employee stole the entire bag, it's more likely the company will try to track down the bag, but if he stole an item from the bag, then there is no repercussion.

Traveling with clubs has risks for sure. I am not sure what the solution is. This is why rather drive to a tournament when possible. I guess it is a risk you just have to take.

When we fly I always worry about having to replace all the clubs if they got lost that too me would be the worst. Not sure if you can get travel insurance that would cover this sort of thing? I am not sure but I thought it will cover things such as this. If it does you may need to prove contents though.

any advise for those traveling with clubs here in about 3 1/2 weeks? take all heads off and put them in a separate bag? lol.

sorry for your loss.

I travel with my clubs quite a bit. I use a soft case because the hard cases are too much of a hassle. I was always afraid of snapping the head off the driver because it was a tight fit, and I'm not sure how much times I flew before realizing "you know, I could just take the head off of this thing". Duh.